The most
universally acclaimed saint of all times and the most celebrated, in all the aalameen (worlds), among jinnn and men as well
as among the arwaah (souls) and the malaika (angels), the beloved of AllahTa'ala
who throughout history has been showered the titles of muhyudeen (reviver of faith),
qutbRabbani and ghauth-al-a'zam (the greatest helper), Sayyidi wa Imami
Shaykh-ul-AkbarAbu Muhammad Abdul Qadir Jilani,Radhu Allahu Anh was born in Ramadan
470 A.H/1077 CE in Jilan, Persia. His father's name was Abu Salih, a man of taqwa (piety) and a
direct descendant of Hadrat Imam Hasan ibn Ali Rady Allahu Anh. His mother Ummul-Khair Fatima
was a saintly daughter of a saintly father Shaykh Abdullah Sawma'ee who was a direct descendant
of Hadrat Imam Husain ibn AliRady Allahu Anh.

Thus Muhyudeen
Shaykh Abdul Qadir Jilani was both Hasani and Husaini, a descendant of
the Holy Prophet, Sallallahu alaihi wa Sallam. For this reason, the Sindhis for
example, lovingly call him "putarmithe mahboob jo" (the blessed son of the sweet beloved Holy Prophet),
Sallallahu alaihi wa Sallam.

Yaa
Hayyu Yaa Hayyu Yaa Qayyum Yaa Hayyu Yaa Hayyu Yaa Qayyum

He
Reached The State of Siddiqeen

The
Holy Prophet MuhammadMustafaSallallahu alaihi wa Sallam is the last Prophet, there is no prophet after him.
But people can still aspire to spiritual progress, acquire taqwa (piety) and saintliness and become
Awliya Allah (friends of Allah). And the highest spiritual state after anbiya (prophets),
belongs to the Siddiqeen (the truthful) that is why the Holy Prophet taught us to make the dua:Allahummaj
'alna min-as-Siddiqeen (O Allah make us among the truthful). Well, Shaykh Abdul Qadir Jilani
Rady Allahu Anh manifested to the world that he ranked among the siddiqeen at the
ripe age of 18. At that age, his thirst for knowledge and eagerness for the company of the Awliya Allah
took him to the city of Baghdad.

It is related
that as he was about to leave home on this momentous journey, his widowed mother sewed forty gold coins inside his coat as
part of his inheritance, and as parting advice told him to be forever truthful. The caravan with which he was travelling had
gone as far as Hamadan when it was attacked by a gang of robbers. In the course of their loot, one of the robbers asked him
whether he had anything with him and he truthfully replied that he had forty gold coins sewn in his coat. The robber obviously
thought he was joking and narrated this incident to his chief who decided to come and see this young man. When his coat was
torn open, sure enough there were forty gold coins. The gang leader was astounded. He asked Shaykh Abdul
Qadir Jilani as to why he revealed this when he could have very well kept it secret. Shaykh
Abdul Qadir Jilani told him that his mother had advised him not to lie and he was duty bound to obey his mother, Hearing this,
the gang leader was overpowered with remorse, repented, accepted Shaykh Abdul Qadir Jilani as his
Shaykh and so did all his followers and they went on to acquire wilayah (sainthood)
themselves. This is how ShaykhAbdul Qadir Jilani came to be ranked among the Siddiqeen.
Allahummaj 'alna min-as-Siddiqeen, Aameen Yaa Rabbal 'Aalameen.

Sayyid Hajji Abdul Raheem Bin Sayyid Muhammad Ismail Shirazi has captured the essence
of this incident most beautifully in the following verses of his Urdu poem on the Gauth-al-A'zam:

Focussing your spiritual glance at the thieves You turned
them into great saints O, the great helper, your stature is truly astounding (Gulzare Tayyiba, vol
3, p 18)

Yaa
Hayyu Yaa Hayyu Yaa Qayyum Yaa Hayyu Yaa Hayyu Yaa Qayyum

Sharia,
Tariqa and Haqeeqi Ma'rifa

In matters
of Shariah (sacred Muslim law), Shaykh Abdul Qadir Jilani Rady Allahu Anh
followed the Hanbal Madh-hab (school of sacred Muslim law) but was an authority on the Shafi-i-Madh-hab
as well, and a chief exponent of the Ahl us-Sunnah wal Jama'ah (the people who follow the Sunnah
of the Holy Prophet and the Jama'ah of his blessed companions). The way to draw nearer
to Allah Ta'ala is through additional voluntary prayers day and night, through constant remembrance
(Zikr), unceasing salawaat (Durood) on the Holy
Prophet Sallallahu alaihi wa Sallam, Sunnah fasting, charity, zuhd
(abstinence) and juhd (exertion in the way of Allah Ta'ala) as exemplified
by the Holy Prophet himself. This then is the tariqa (spiritual path leading to Allah
Ta'ala) which is rooted in sharia (sacred Muslim Law).

A Shaykh,
musk-scented in shariah, tariqa and haqeeqi-ma'rifa (knowledge of
Allah Ta'ala) is able to ascertain the spiritual level of a mureed (disciple) and
can assign additional awraad and azkaar (voluntary prayers) to be performed
to attain spiritual progress. Shaykh Abdul Qadir Jilani learned tariqa
at the hands of ShaykhHammad Bin Muslim al-Dabbas, Rahmatullahi alaih.
Traditionally when someone is appointed a khalifa of a Shaykh in
tariqa, he is given a khirqa. Shaykh Abdul Qadir Jilani
was bestowed the khirqa by ShaykhQadi Abi Said al-Mukhrami,Rahmatullahi
alaih.

The
tariqa followed by Shaykh Abdul Qadir Jilani Rady Allahu Anh came to be called
after him the Qadiriyya tariqa and it came to be universally accepted as a divinely-guided path
to spiritual progress through zikr of Allah to polish one's heart of all evil, to lead a virtuous
life, to attain the love of the Holy Prophet, Sallallahu alaihi wa Sallam, the love of the sahaba
(companions) and the Ahle Bayt (the Prophet's blessed household), the love of the
awliya (saints), and to follow the sharia (sacred Muslim law) according
to the teachings of any one of the four Imams of madh-hab, that is Imam Abu Hanifa, Imam
Shafi-i, Imam Malik and Imam Ahmad bin Hanbal, may Allah Ta'ala be pleased
with them all.

Any tariqa
has a silsila or spiritual chain linking the teachings of the Shaykh to the teachings of Rasulullah
Sallallahu aliahi wa Sallam. The spiritual geneology of Shaykh Abdul Qadir Jilani
RadyAllahu Anh is traced back to the Holy Prophet as follows:

The names
in this silsila (spiritual chain) are given in the Tawassul of Qadiriyya
in the kitab Abdul Qadir Fee Eedahittasawwuf compiled by Nuriddeen ibn Shaykh
Husain Mahmud al-Ghasani as well as in the biography of the Shaykh by Dr. Zahurul
Hasan Sharib.

Yaa
Hayyu Yaa Hayyu Yaa Qayyum Yaa Hayyu Yaa Hayyu Yaa Qayyum

Nasiha

Shaykh Abdul Qadir JilaniRady Allahu Anh taught Muslims and
preached to non-Muslims in Baghdad. His Khutbas (sermons) and Nasiha (advice)
have been compiled and handed down through centuries as classics of Muslim spirituality.

Besides
the Qur'an Kareem and Hadith Shareef, these are required minimum reading
for someone who aspires to be an aalim (learned). As we read his masterpieces, we are struck by
the fact that his style of expression is different from that of any other Shaykh, aalim
or wali. He is so much saturated with the spiritual power of Tawheed that
his exposition and its flow has a spiritually confident personality all its own so that anyone who reads his khutbas
spontaneously admits that he is the qutb-al-aqtaab, the Shaykh-ul-Mashaaikh,
the Gauth-al-A'zam and much more.... a Shaykh who epitomised mujaddidiyya
(faith revival) and wilayah (sainthood).

Yaa
Hayyu Yaa Hayyu Yaa Qayyum Yaa Hayyu Yaa Hayyu Yaa Qayyum

Azkaar,
Salawaat and Qasida

The Qadiriyya
tariqa is a tariqa of Zikrullah, remembrance of Allah. The
plural of Zikr is azkaar. The azkaar and awraad
(daily voluntary prayers) of ShaykhAbdul Qadir JilaniRady Allahu Anh
have been compiled in many kitaabs (religious books), one of which is Fuyudhaatur-Rabbaniyya,
compiled by al-Hajj Ismail Ibn Sayyid Muhammad Sa'eed Al-Qadiri. It gives the awraad and
azkaar of Shaykh Abdul Qadir Jilani for each day of the week as well as
for various special occasions.

Then we
have the salawaat (durood) on the Holy Prophet Sallallahu
alaihi wa Sallam recited by the Gauth-al-A'zam and we have to read Fuyudhaatur-Rabbaniyya
as well as his major classics to appreciate how profuse Shaykh Abdul Qadir Jilani was
in sending salawaat and salaam on the Holy Prophet, Allahumma
salli wa sallim alaih. His most famous salaat is called As-Salatu Gauthiya
after him while he also recited As-Salatul Kubra (The big salaat) and
kibritil ahmar (the philosopher's stone). Kibritil ahmar is given in both Fuyudhaatur-Rabbaniyya
as well as in Miskaatus-Salawaat of Mawlana Muhammad Elias Burney. "The pholosopher's
stone" means something very rare to find.

His emphasis
in immersing yourself in the Asma Allah-ul-Husna (the most Beautiful Names of Allah
Ta'ala) until they run through your veins is breathtaking. He has woven a qasida (hymn)
of 63 verses around these Asma-ul-Husna whose opening verses are:

I
start the Tawheed of Allah with Bismillah. I will
finish with the Zikr of Allah, the Most Beautiful. And I bear witness that there is no Lord other
than Allah. Glorified is He, beyond human understanding, Most Perfect.

And his
qasida Gauthiya is universally popular. It is chanted from Rabat to Lahor and from Mombasa to Toronto.
ShaykhAbdul Qadir Jilani Rady Allahu Anh passed away on 11
Rabi-ul-Akhir 561 A.H/1166 C.E, at the age of 91. Those in the Qadiriyya tariqa recite
Qur'an Kareem and do Zikr on that night. In the Indian sub-continent,
it is called Gyaarween shareef, or the blessed eleventh night of the month. Qasida Gauthiya
is also recited. In it, ShaykhAbdul Qadir Jilani gives us some of the secrets of his own spiritual
stature. Consider the spiritual force with which the opening lines burst upon you:

Saqaanil
hubbu kaasaatil wisaalee Faqultu likhamratee nahwee ta'aalee

When we
read the classics of ShaykhAbdul Qadir Jilani Rady Allahu Anh like Sirr
al-asrar, Futuh al-ghayb, Ghunyat al-talibin, Al-Fat'hu Rabbani, and qasida
Gauthiya and recite the awraad and salawaat that he recited,
we begin to understand why he is considered to be the Gauthul A'zam (greatest saint). But the initiate
sometimes wonders why he revealed so many spiritual secrets when most other Shaykhs are reticent.
To answer that question, we will need to turn to Sayyidi wa Imami Mawlana Abdullah ibn Alawi al-Haddad, Rady
Allahu Anh. In Gifts for the Seeker, he explains that Shaykh Abdul Qadir Jilani,
Rady Allahu Anh had received permission to divulge these spiritual secrets-"for the man who receives
such permission is under an order which he can but obey-and the secret of the permission granted in such matters is itself
one that cannot be divulged." (Gifts for the Seeker, translation by Dr. Mostafa al-Badawi, p.11).

Yaa
Hayyu Yaa Hayyu Yaa Qayyum Yaa Hayyu Yaa Hayyu Yaa Qayyum \

Spread
of Islam Through Sufi Saints

Shaykh Abdul Qadir Jilani, Rady Allahu Anh as the model of
a Sufi saint, through his nasiha, azkaar and salawaat, through giving
a living reality to Islam, in his complete surrender to the Will of Allah and in his showing of tawakkul
(trust in Allah) and through his teachings and preachings converted more than five thousand Jews and Christians to Islam while
more than a hundred thousand ruffians, outlaws, murderers, thieves and bandits repented and became devout Muslims and gentle
dervishes, explains ShaykhTosun Bayrak al-Jerrahi al-Halveti in his Introduction
to Sirr al-asrar, p xxxi. And the halaqa of Zikr
(Zikr congregations) which he instituted have continued to attract millions of people to Islam through
centuries and will continue to do so, Insha-Allah, till the Day of Judgement, Aameen.

A few examples
suffice to illustrate this. The first example is that of Mawlana Mu'eenuddin ChishtiRahmatullahi alaih who
acknowledged ShaykhAbdul Qadir Jilani as his Shaykh
and spread Islam in India among the Hindus. He achieved such a high spiritual stature that he is called Sultanul
Hind (the sultan of saints in the Indian sub-continent) and all the saints in that region are under his banner
while he is under the banner of the Gauth-al-A'zam. In the same way Shaykh Uways
ibn Muhammad Rahmatullahi alaih of Somalia became a khalifa in Tariqatul
Qadiriyya at the shrine of ShaykhAbdul Qadir Jilani in Baghdad and
spread Islam in the whole of Eastern Africa through congregations of Zikr. And Shaykh
Hamzah Fansuri, considered to be the greatest saint in Indonesia and Malaysia proudly proclaimed that he learned
Islam from Shaykh Abdul Qadir Jilani.

It can
truly be said that the mureedeen and muhibbeen (loving disciples) of Shaykhbarakaat Abdul Qadir Jilani Rady Allahu Anh have spread Islam throughout
the world through Zikr. The (blessings) of zikr are truly unending. May
Allah Ta'ala make us among the Zaakireen, Aameen.

And the
granting of wilayah (the stature of a saint) by Allah Ta'ala to the Zaakireen
(those who remember Him), aabideen (those who worship Him) and muhibbeen
(those who love the Holy Prophet) is in all instances mediated by the Holy Prophet Sallallahu alaihi
wa Sallam, Shaykh Abdul Qadir Jilani and one's own Shaykh. After all the awliya
and the ulama (learned) are the Khalifatullah, vicegerants
of Allah. And one must always aspire to wilayah so that one becomes 'Aarif Billah
(knower of Allah). Allahummaj 'alna minal 'aarifeen, Aameen Yaa Rabbal Aalameen.

Yaa
Hayyu Yaa Hayyu Yaa Qayyum Yaa Hayyu Yaa Hayyu Yaa Qayyum

HisAqeeda

His aqeeda
(beliefs) was that of the Ahl us-Sunnah wal Jam'ah based on the Qur'an, and the Sunnah
of the Holy Prophet Sallallahu alaihi wa Sallam. All the Sufi Saints through centuries have expounded on
and lived by this aqeeda. Its cornerstone is Tawheed (Unity of Allah),
its nurturing is with Asma ul Husna and Ishq (love) of the Holy Prophet;
its daily life is governed by shariah (sacred Muslim law); its growth and spread is through nasiha
(good advice), zikr of Allah Ta'ala and salawaat
and salaam on the Holy Prophet, Sallallahu alaihi wa Sallam,
its peak is jihad and its ultimate is Fana Fillah (annihilation of oneself
in the Love of Allah Ta'ala) after which Allah Ta'ala showers you with
Baqa Billah (spiritual life everlasting) in His Ridha (pleasure).

So you
start with Ridhal Waalidain (in the pleasure of your parents) and end with Ridhallah
(pleasure of Allah Subhanahu wa Ta'ala). And the sahaba (companions) of
the Holy Prophet are referred to as Rady Allahu Anhum wa Radhu Anh (Allah is well pleased with them
and they are pleased with Him). And according to ShaykhAbdul Qadir Jilani, his
own position is equal to the dust under the feet of the sahaba. If that is the case, what of the
stature of the blessed sahaba of the Holy Prophet, Sallallahu alaihi wa Sallam?
Their spiritual stature derives from the fact that they were blessed with the opportunity of beholding the Holy Prophet with
the eyes of imaan (faith). That being the case how can anyone be capable enough to explain in full
the sifat (attributes) of Muhammad-e-Arabi,Rasule-Rabbil Aalameen,
Rahmatullil Aalameen. Only Allah Rabbul Izzat is well aware of what he bestowed on
His beloved Prophet, Allahumma Salli wa sallim alaih.

Yaa
Hayyu Yaa Hayyu Yaa Qayyum Yaa Hayyu Yaa Hayyu Yaa Qayyum

His
Daily Life and Teachings

Imam Shihabuddeen Umar Bin Muhammad Suhrawardi Rahmatullahi alaih in his universally
acclaimed classic Awariful Ma'arif refers to ShaykhAbdul Qadir
Jilani as "Our Shaykh". He writes that according to ShaykhAbdul
Qadir Jilani, the Shaykh has to cultivate these qualities:

Imam
Ibn KathirRahmatullahi alaih described the admonitions of ShaykhAbdul Qadir Jilani saying: "He enjoined the people to do what is good and abstain form what is evil. His
admonitions addressed caliphs, ministers, people in authority, judges, companions and the masses. Standing on the pulpits
of the mosques, he reprimanded them in the presence of witnesses as well as during his public addresses. He disavowed the
civil appointment of any unjust person, chose Allah's blessings over anyone else's wrath, and was not affected by any reproach."

In his
book Zail Tabaqat Al-Hanabila,Ibn Rajab quoted ShaykhMuwaffaq Al-Deen, author of the book Al-Maghni, saying: "I have never heard of
anyone having as many noble deeds and miraculous blessings (Karamat) as those attributed to Shaykh
Abdul Qadir Jilani".

Dr. Muhammad Haroon of the Raza Academy has described these in detail in "The World Importance
ofGhaus al AzamHadrat Sheikh Muhyiddin Abdul Qadir Jilani". To gain baraka
(blessings), let us at this juncture recall one of these miracles. It is related that as it was cloudy, the new moon of Ramadan
had not been sighted and people were confused whether or not to fast the next day. They came to Ummal-Khayr and
asked if the child had taken food that day. As he had not, they surmised that the fast had begun. His mother relates; "My
son 'Abdul Qadir was born in the month of Ramadan. No matter how hard I tried he refused to suckle in the
daytime. Throughout his infancy he would never take food during the month of fasting." (Sirr al-asrar,
Introduction by ShaykhTosun al-Jerrahi al-Halveti, p xiii)

ShaykhAbdul Qadir Jilani,Rady Allahu Anh had four wives,
each a model of virtue and devoted to him. He had forty-nine children, twenty-seven sons and twenty-two daughters. Four of
his sons, Shaykh Abdul Wahhab, Shaykh Isa, Shaykh Abdul
Razzaq and Shaykh Musa became famous for their education and learning. This is how Sheikh
Tosun al-Halveti explains about the daily life of Shaykh Abdul Qadir Jilani,Rady Allahu
Anh: "He himself had given all of himself to Allah. His nights passed with little or no sleep in secluded prayer
and meditation. He spent his days like a true follower of the Prophet in the service of humanity. Three times a week he would
deliver public sermons to thousands of people. Every day in the morning and the afternoon he gave lessons in Quranic commentary,
Prophetic traditions, theology, religious law and sufism. He spent the time after the midday prayer giving advice and consultation
to people, whether beggars or kings, who would come from all parts of the world. Before sunset prayers, rain or shine, he
took to the streets to distribute bread among the poor. As he spent all his days in fasting he would eat only once a day,
after sunset prayer, and never alone. His servants would stand at his door asking passers-by if they were hungry, so that
they could share his table." (Sirr al-Asrar, p XLIV)

Yaa
Hayyu Yaa Hayyu Yaa Qayyum Yaa Hayyu Yaa Hayyu Yaa Qayyum

Qasaid
on the Shaykh

Given these
realities of history, is it any wonder then to find that more qasaid (poems) have been written in
praise of ShaykhAbdul Qadir Jilani Rady Allahu Anh than on any other
saint? Gulzare Tayyiba in Urdu for example contains 17 poems in his honour while the Diwan
(in Arabic) in Taraqatul Qadiriyya has 27. In a short article like this, it is not possible to do
full justice to all the poetry in honour of the Shaykh. It suffices to give a sprinkling from Champay
Dhee Bootee of Sultan ArifeenShaykhSultan Bahu in Punjabi,
from the poetry of Shaykh Hamzah Fanzuri of Indonesia in Malay, from the salaam
of Iman Ahmed Raza Khan in Urdu and from the Diwan in Tariqatul Qadiriyya
in Arabic, in that order.

We begin with the translations
of theabyaat (couplets) of Sultan Bahu in Champay Dhee Bootee, a classic
in Kalaame Ma'rifat:

I
Hamzah who am of Fansur a son At Shahar Nawi my being have won The knowledge sublime
I acquired from one Called Abdul Qadir Sayyid of Jilan.

A'la Hadrat Imam Ahmed Raza Khan wrote Salaams on the Holy Prophet
Sallallahu alaihi wa Sallam in which after profuse salutations on the Holy Prophet, he also sent
salaams on the Ahle-Bayt and the sahabaRady Allahu Anhum,
as well as on the Imams of madh-hab, the awliya and the saleheen,
Rahmatullahi alaihim ajma'een.

Consider just two verses
from A'la Hadrat on the Gauth-ul-A'zam to appreciate his love for the
Shaykh.

For
the sake of the Holy Prophet and Shaykh Jilani And those in the tribe of
Adnaan They have treaded the Path of the Merciful Lord For the sake of the Holy Prophet and ShaykhJilani.

(O Allah hear our prayers)

Tazkiratul Awliya (the Zikr of the friends of Allah) is truly
unending. May Allah Subhanahu wa Ta'ala forgive us and give us the hidaya
(guidance) to live Islam according to the Qur'an and the Sunnah of Rasulullah, Sallallahu
alaihi wa Sallam as explained and exemplified by Gauth-ul-A'zamShaykhAbdul Qadir Jilani,Rady Allahu Anh, Aameen Yaa Rabbal Aalameen.